San Francisco mayoral candidate Bevan Dufty speaks to staff in his morning meeting in San Francisco, Calif., August 19, 2011.

San Francisco mayoral candidate Bevan Dufty speaks to staff in his morning meeting in San Francisco, Calif., August 19, 2011.

Photo: Sarah Rice, Special To The Chronicle

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Former San Francisco Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier gestures during a San Francisco Mayoral debate Thursday, June 16, 2011, in San Francisco. Nine candidates for Mayor of San Francisco met to debate their platforms for open government, technology and civic engagement. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Ran on: 07-03-2011
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Ran on: 07-03-2011
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Former San Francisco Supervisor Michela Alioto-Pier gestures during a San Francisco Mayoral debate Thursday, June 16, 2011, in San Francisco. Nine candidates for Mayor of San Francisco met to debate their ... more

Photo: Ben Margot, Associated Press

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3-word bios on the ballot allow some room for creativity

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It's ballot designation time, when candidates get to polish their creative writing skills by putting together a three-word description of their current career that will show up on the November ballot to inform voters and help them get elected. And not necessarily in that order.

It's a game not everyone can play. Leland Yee, for example, is "State Senator," just as Jeff Adachiis "Public Defender" and John Avalosis "District 11 Supervisor." David Chiucan get a bit more creative, listing himself grandly as "President, Board of Supervisors," rather than the more prosaic "District 3 Supervisor," but elected officials generally are stuck with the job they have, even if they weren't actually elected to it. See Ed Lee: "Appointed Mayor."

For everyone else, the game is on, limited only by the many rules in the state Election Code.

Among the rules is that there is no such thing as "former" or "ex," which is bad news for politicians who were elected officials in the past, want to be elected officials in the future, but aren't elected officials right now. We're talking about you, Bevan Dufty and Michela Alioto-Pier.

For Dufty, who wanted to be listed as "Former Supervisor," it was such a crushing blow he decided not to play at all. Voters will only see his name on the ballot, with no occupation.

"After 20 years as a department head and supervisor, people know who Bevan is," said Alex Tourk, his campaign consultant.

Alioto-Pier, on the other hand, decided to make the best of the situation and transformed herself into "Small Businesswoman/Mother." While there's not a hint in her campaign biography of what that small business might be, there's no denying the three young ones who show up with their mom on her campaign website.

Picking the right word or words is an art. Joanna Rees, for example, lists herself as "Entrepreneur/Educator," a salt-of-the-earth designation that sounds way better than "Wealthy Person Who Runs $200 Million-Plus Venture Capital Fund."

What you don't say also can be important.

Tony Hall, a former supervisor, picked "Retired Administrator" as his occupation. He spent more than 30 years working for San Francisco, but given the rapidly sinking popularity of any and all government officials, "Retired City Administrator" could be the kiss of death on election day.